First prize winner

While the media were still reporting on the grudges between Lippi and Juventus, as well as the next coaching choices for the Bianconeri, a piece of news in Italy stirred up a huge wave.

The cover of the news was just a photograph, capturing a group of people walking out of Milan Malpensa Airport, among whom was prominently featured Jett Pufnastier, the Chief Editor of "France Football" magazine.

He appeared in Milan! Everyone knew what this meant; the dust had settled on the final outcome of the European Golden Ball Award. Though everyone knew this award almost certainly belonged to Wang Feng, the day of confirmation still left many competing players feeling regretful.

Of course, there were a few European supremacists who thought Wang Feng shouldn't win, perhaps suggesting Pufnastier came for Shevchenko or Inzaghi, but such claims only elicited laughter.

In fact, on the second day of Pufnastier's arrival, Inter Milan allowed their group to enter Pinetina for interviews, and the photographers from "France Football" magazine also took several sets of photos for Wang Feng, officially congratulating him on winning the 2003 European Golden Ball Award.

Milan Sports News stated in its report, "The European Golden Ball Award usually doesn't hold many surprises because we always catch sight of the staff from 'France Football' magazine at the airport ahead of time."

"Wang Feng, who helped Inter Milan achieve the quintuple crown, deserves the award. He consecutively won the UEFA Club Footballer of the Year and the European Golden Ball Award, with the FIFA World Player of the Year honor within reach."

"Since Zidane won the European Golden Ball Award at Juventus in 1998, no player from Serie A has won this top European honor for 5 years, which is somewhat embarrassing for the league ranked first in Europe."

"So Wang Feng's award is not only his own glory, but also Milan's glory, and even Serie A's glory!"

The news of Wang Feng's award quickly spread from Italy to various parts of the world, and media outlets in each country followed suit in reporting. Especially in China, this news instantly caused jubilation among the media and fans.

Looking back at the history of modern football, no Chinese player has achieved such high results and honors in the football world. Wang Feng has added a bright stroke to the history of Chinese football, making all Chinese people feel immensely proud.

Internet forums, burgeoning like spring bamboo shoots, and newly launched Tieba platforms were all occupied by ecstatic netizens. They kept posting various thoughts and aspirations. Wang Feng's experiences and achievements were repeated over and over again.

The huge traffic caused most forum servers to crash, and the immature Tieba platforms faced constant issues, requiring programmers to work overtime to resolve them.

Various departments and authoritative media outlets also published comments, fully acknowledging Wang Feng's achievements and congratulating him on winning the trophy.

As the overwhelming news swept through the football world, Wang Feng was busy replying to various congratulatory messages and calls.

People like Mate, Aimee Antonis, Ronaldo, Bess, and Renee all congratulated Wang Feng at the first opportunity. They had provided various kinds of assistance to Wang Feng throughout his career, and he had always maintained good contact with them.

Unbeknownst to him, he had already accumulated a wide network of contacts in the football world. Therefore, even before Pufnastier arrived, Wang Feng received the news, and "France Football" magazine even called him specifically, hoping to take some candid photos of his life.

After discussing with his sister and Lu Yao, they felt there was no harm, so they invited Pufnastier and his entourage to their villa for dinner, and also for a photo shoot.

His sister was always reluctant to appear in public, and Lu Yao only agreed to take one group photo under Wang Feng's persuasion and his sister's persuasion, officially announcing their relationship to the public.

When Lu Yao appeared in clothes bought by Wang Feng, the photographer couldn't help but praise, "Wang, you two are simply made for each other, like a pair of golden boy and jade girl." Lu Yao blushed and smiled, lightly linking her arm with Wang Feng's, and the two quickly finished the shoot.

In early December, the round of 16 matches of the Coppa Italia officially began. The format of the cup competition had been reformed this season, starting from the round of 16 with two-leg home and away matches.

Originally, it was thought that the cancellation of the UEFA Champions League group stage would make Inter Milan's schedule less hectic, but unexpectedly, two more matches were added out of thin air.

Inter Milan's opponent was newly promoted Serie A team Sampdoria. After the match against Juventus, the Inter Milan squad flew to Genoa for the first leg.

Due to interviews and photo shoots, Wang Feng delayed his departure by two days before heading to Genoa alone, but coach Mancini still placed him in the starting lineup.

"I believe in your adaptability and rapport with your teammates," Mancini said. "I made some changes to the lineup for this game out of necessity. Many players feel tired due to the high-intensity continuous matches."

"But deep down, I still hope to continue Inter Milan's glorious record. After all, I took over the team at its peak, and the pressure will be immense." Mancini explained to Wang Feng very seriously.

Wang Feng nodded. He actually wanted to create more glory again. "If you feel tired or uncomfortable, please tell me. Your health is the most important thing for the team, and I will always keep a substitution slot for you." Mancini added.

"Don't worry, Mr. Mancini," Wang Feng said confidently. "I endured last year's tough schedule, so now I'm only stronger than before."

After the game started, Wang Feng led the substitute lineup against Sampdoria, and both sides created several good chances. The home team's defense couldn't stop Wang Feng, and under their attack, Inter Milan's substitute defense also had many loopholes.

But the newly crowned Golden Ball winner was not just a name. In the 17th minute of the game, Inter Milan's attack, Lamouchi sent a lob to the left, Cruz and Sampdoria center-back Efron both chased after the ball, but Efron was faster, intercepting with his left foot first.

The ball didn't fly too far, but came to the area around the center line. Wang Feng judged the landing spot well. Seeing that the defending players were quite far away, probably to defend against his breakthrough, he confidently met the dropping ball with a direct volley.

With a "bang", the ball swiftly flew towards the goal, and due to no interference, Wang Feng's shot was impeccable in both power and angle.

The Sampdoria goalkeeper dove and almost formed an "I" shape in the air, but still couldn't reach the ball heading towards the corner, letting it fly into the net.

1-0! Inter Milan broke the deadlock!

In the subsequent game, Wang Feng's performance remained very active. In the 36th minute, he assisted Carlon in scoring another goal. Therefore, in the 65th minute, Mancini replaced him.

The only regret was that in the 85th minute, Sampdoria pulled one back through Dianana. However, Inter Milan still held on to a victory with two away goals, and the prospect of advancing looked very promising.